Pathology Flashcards
What are the causes of atheroma?
- high blood pressure (hypertension)
- diabetes
- obesity
- high cholesterol
- smoking
- inflammatory diseases such as lupus and rheumatoid arthritis
- age
- sex (men and postmenopausal women are at risk)
Describe the mechanism of an atheroma in 5 steps
- endothelial dysfunction
- formation of lipid layer or fatty streak within the intima
- migration of leukocytes and smooth muscle cells into the vessel wall
- foam cell formation
- degradation of extracellular matrix
What are the effects of atheromas?
- In some cases, pieces of the plaque can break away. When that happens, the body responds by producing a blood clot, which can further block artery walls.
- If atheromas become big enough, they can lead to serious health issues, including heart attack and stroke.
what are the clinical manifestations of atheromas?
- chest pain or angina
- pain in your leg,arm or anywhere else thay has a blocked artery.
What are the causes of thrombosis?
- disease or injury to the leg veins
- not being able to move around (immobility)
- a broken bone (fracture)
- certain medicines
- obesity
Name some risk factors of thrombosis
- smoking
- diabetes
- high blood pressure
- high cholesterol
- lack of activity and obesity
- poor diet
- family history of arterial thrombosis
- lack of movement, such as after surgery or a long trip.
What are the clinical manifestations of thrombosis?
- pain in one leg (usually calf or inner thigh)
- swelling in the leg or arm
- chest pain
- numbness or weakness on one side of the body
- sudden change in your mental state
What is Virchow’s triad?
The three factors which are critically important in the development of venous thrombosis:
- venous stasis
- activation of blood coagulation
- vein damage
Name 4 possible complications of pneumonia
- Involvement of pleural surface- pleurisy (can cause fibrous adhesions), pleural effusion
- Tissue necrosis and abscess formation-fistula to the pleura- empyema or pneumothorax
- bacteraemia-inflammation at other sites, abscesses in other organs
- sepsis
What is the name given to colon cancer?
Adenocarcinoma
At some sites most cancers are of one histological subtype. Which is the most common?
adenocarcinoma
other forms of tumour are uncommon
- lymphoma
- neuroendocrine tumours
- GIST
On resection specimens or with other biopsy samples (eg from the liver) histology contributes to tumour staging. what does this impact on?
treatment decisions and prognosis
what are the objectives of cancer staging?
- to document the extent of the disease
- this has an impact on treatment decisions
- not all disease can be detected:
- radiologically or clinically (either before or after surgery)
- the full extent of disease at the primary site, extent of invasion and the presence of metastatic disease may only be fully appreciated by microscopy.
- fibrosis can mimic cancer-histology discriminates
Why are histological landmarks key in pathology?
For accurate pathological staging of cancer
- histological diagnosis and staging are key discussion points at MDTs
What are the 4 T stages in the TNM classification?
- T1-invasion of sub-mucosa
- T2- invasion of muscularis propria
- T3- invasion to subserosa and non-peritonealised pericolic and pararectal tissues
- T4- invasion of adjacent organs or perforation of visceral peritoneum.
What are the 3 N stages of the TNM classification?
- N0- no regional lymph node metastasis
- N1- 1-3 regional nodes contain metastatic tumour
- N2- 4 or more nodes contain metastatic tumour
What are the 2 M stages of the TNM classificartion?
- M0- no distant metastasis
- M1-distant metastasis
The pneumonic VINDICATE gives the causes of disease, what are they?
- Vascular
- Infectious/Inflammatory
- Neoplastic
- Drugs/Toxins
- Intervention/iatrogenic
- Congenital/developmental
- Autoimmune
- Trauma
- Endocrine/metabolic
What does iatrogenic mean?
- disease related to medical intervention
- recognised complications of treatments and procedures
- sometimes risks are unavoidable
- need to be aware of these- informed consent
Describe some key facts about endocrine disorder and give an example
- very common
- diabetes mellitus
- pituitary, thyroid, parathyroid and adrenal glands
- inborn errors of metabolism
- inflammatory processes (often auto-immune)
- tumours- benign and malignant
Provide some key facts on metabolic causes of disease and give an example
- many disease processes
- obesity
- overlap with endocrine disorders
- inborn errors of metabolism
- haemachromatosis (Fe)
- Wilson’s disease (Cu)
What is tissue homeostasis a balance between?
Cell division and cell loss
- regulation of induction of sensecence
What are the two types of stress to which our bodies are subject?
Environmental and endogenous
What can happen if changes due to stress are severe?
There may be cellular injury or death with associated damage to tissue and organ structure and function.
There are __________ mechanisms that can enable cells to cope with stimuli that are potentially injurous
adaptive
What are the 5 causes of cellular/tissue injury?
- physical- mechanical, thermal, electric, barotrauma
- chemical- drugs, metabolic, hypoxia, nutrition
- infectious- cytolysis, toxins, immune response
- immunological- may contribute to other categories
- Genetic- may contribute to other categories
What are the 2 phases of cellular injury?
Reversible and irreversible
How are the phases of cellular injury recognised?
By morphological features and biochemical features.
What does severe damage/injury of a cell lead to?
cell death
Describe how adaptive responses play a role in reversible/irreversible cell injury
- adaptive response can protect the cells and could be a prompt return to normality
- at the reversible stage the damaging agent may be transient
- there is a threshold beyond which a cell cannot recover.
What are the intracellular systems vulnerable to cellular injury?
- cell membrane integrity
- aerobic respiration
- protein synthesis
- enzymes
- structural proteins
- genomic integrity
Name 5 types of revesible cell damage
- membrane pump fails
- cell swelling
- accumulation of lipids
- reduced aerobic respiration
- increased anaerobic respiration
Give a definition of irreversible damage to cells
Precise definition is difficult
characterised by
- Severe damage to cell membranes
- severe damage to mitochondria
- leakage of enzymes
- nuclear changes
What are two characteristics of irreversible cell damage?
ATP depletion
Cell Membrane Damage
- progressive loss of phospholipids
- increased degradation
- reduced synthesis
- lipid breakdown products
- Reactive oxygen species
- cytoskeletal abnormalities
What are the two types of cell death?
- necrosis
- apoptosis
Describe apoptosis
- physiological or
- pathological
- affects scattered cells
- cells shrink
- apoptotic bodies form
- no inflammation
- energy dependent
- stereotypes sequence of events
- biochemical regulation
Decribe necrosis
- always pathological
- affects sheets of cells
- cells swell
- dissolution of organelles
- inflammation
- not energy dependent
- descriptive terms
What are the two terms used if there is injury and damage and then attempted repair which is completed?
Regeneration
Restitution
What happens if there is injury and damage and then attempted repair which is incomplete? (2 terms)
Repair
Scarring
What 3 things is the outcome of cell injury affected by?
- The type of cell affected
- The damaging agent
- other host factors
How does the type of cell affected influence the outcome of cell injury?
- adaptive capability of the affected cell
- pre-existing disease
How does the damaging agent affect the outcome of cell injury?
- duration/severity of exposure
- damage that affects structures required for healing e.g. blood vessels with radiation
State the three classifications of cell type
- Labile
- Stable
- Permanent
Give 2 examples of where labile cells are found
- GI tract
- bone marrow
Give 2 examples of stable cells
- hepatocytes
- endothelium
Give 2 examples of permanent cells
- neurones
- skeletal muscle
What are labile cells?
Ones which are in the active cell cycle all of the time.
What are stable cells?
Ones which under normal circumstances do not show that they are in the cell cycle but if required can replace lost cells.
What are permanent cells?
They have no capacity in post-natal life for further mitotic divisions, return to normal is not possible.
Which cell populations are capable of complete repair (restitution)?
Labile and stable cells
How must death of permanent cell populations be repaired?
With scar tissue formation
- Tissue architecture must be preserved
Examples:
- lobar pneumonia
- hepatitis A
- mild burns
How does repair with scarring proceed? (4 points)
- follows injury with damage to tissue architecture
- requires formulation of granulation tissue
- proceeds through organisation to fibrosis (scarring)
- fibroous scar contracts- by up to 80%- reduces apparent damaged area
For repair with scarring what are the first and second intentions?
First intention- surgical scar
- closely apposed edges
- minimal granulation tissue
- minimal fibrosis
- (langer’s lines)
Second intention- ulcerated surface
- edges widely separated
- prominent granulation tissue
- prominent fibrosis
What are the local factors which influence wound healing?
- type of cell/tissue
- type of injury
- foreign material
- infection
- blood supply
- nerve supply
- local disease e.g. neoplasia
- stability
What are the systemic factors which influence wound healing?
- age
- general health
- nutrition
- general diet
- vitamin C
- specific diseases
- diabetes mellitus
- immunodeficiency
- drugs
- steroids
- cytotoxic drugs
- nutrition
What are the local factors which influence the healing of fractures?
- type of injury
- comminution, compound
- foreign material
- exogenous, interposed soft tissues
- infection
- blood supply
- nerve supply
- local disease
- neoplasia, osteoperosis
- stability/alignment
Why are stability/alignment important local factors which influence the healing of fractures?
- stability is important to ensure the bone ends are nipped together and no osteoarthritis
- alignment is important so the forces transmitted through the bones into the joints are not such that the joints will later become damaged.
What are the 2 types of excessive scar formation?
- hypertrophic scar
- keloid
What kind of mechanisms do we have that can enable cells to cope with stimuli that are potentially injurous?
adaptive mechanisms
What type of adaptations occur as a result of increased demand?
- hypertrophy
- hyperplasia
What type of adaptation occurs as a result of decreased demand?
Atrophy
What type of adaptations occur as a result of altered stimulus?
- metaplasia
- modified metabolism
Define hypertrophy
An increase in cell size
Provide 4 key points about hypertrophy including the types of muscle where it occurs
- May occur in isolation in non-dividing cells
- otherwise can accompany hyperplasia
- often a response to mechanical stress
- muscle:
- skeletal
- cardiac
Hypertrophy becomes pathologic in the heart when the function of the heart is compromised. How can this present and why?
- may present as heart failure-inability of the heart to pump as normal
- the increased bulk of muscle and high pressures generated in the subendocardial regions may cause ischaemia with further damage to and loss of myocytes
Define atrophy
Reduction of cell size and number in an organ that was of normal size.
Provide 5 possible causes of atrophy
- Ageing
- Lack of use/stimulation
- mechanical
- functional
- loss of blood supply
- malnutrition
- mechanical pressure
- e.g. hydronephrosis, hydrocephalus
- can be seen in normal tissue adjacent to tumours
- pituitary adenoma
Describe cerebral atrophy
- decreased brain size with ageing
- impaired blood supply and ischaemic damage may contribute
- may be associated with atherosclerosis
What are the cellular mechanisms of atrophy?
- reduced cellular components
- protein degradation
- “digested” in lysosomes and degraded in many cases by ubiquitin proteasome pathway
- some hormones promote degradation and atrophy- glucocorticoids and thyroid hormone
- some oppose atrophy and promote growth-insulin
How does atrophy contribute to homeostasis?
A balance of growth and atrophy retains homeostasis.
Define hyperplasia
An increase in cell number in response to a stimulus.
- results in increased size/volume of an organ or tissue
- regresses on withdrawal of the stimulus.
Is hyperplasia physiological or pathological?
Both as it can be compensatory/regenerative
Which 3 organs are hormonally sensitive for hyperplasia?
- endometrium
- breast
- thyroid
Describe compensatory hyperplasia
- occurs after loss of tissue
- not common in many tissues
- liver is the most obvious example
- bone marrow
Name one way pathological hyperplasia can be induced and whether it can regress?
hormonally
yes with withdrawal of stimulus
Give 2 examples of pathological hyperplasia
- hormonally induced excess oestrogen leads to endometrial hyperplasia and abnormal menstrual bleeding. often post menopausal
- hormonally induced prostatic hyperplasia. In response to androgens
What is enlargement of the gingival tissues an example of?
- Hyperplastic responses within epithelium and underlying connective tissue
- various causes including certain drugs
Define hypoplasia
Reduced size of an organ thaat never fully developed to a normal size.
- a developmental defect
- e.g. pulmonary hypoplasia
What are metabolic adaptations and metaplasia?
Acquired alterations in gene expression
- associated with altered metabolic capability within the cells eg in cancer cells in response to cytotoxic drugs
- or features of altered differentiation
Define metaplasia
- An acquired form of altered differentiation
- probably reflects altered differentiation pathways from multipotent stem cells
- one fully mature cell type to another fully mature cell type
- can be part of an adaptive response to stress
Give some examples of where metaplasia can occur
- cervix
- bronchus
- salivary ducts
- Barrett’s oesophagus- if there is reflux of gastric contents into the oesophagus the squamous endothelium is damaged. Over time there is loss, ulceration and inflammation. When the area is repaired they are a different type- more closely alligned, adaptive resposne.
- can also affect mesenchymal tissues
Is metaplasia a neoplastic disorder
No
- environmental changes leading to metaplasia may if persistent lead to further changes that can manifest as dysplasia and progress to malignancy (cancer) e.g. barretts oesophagus
Name the 3 inhibitors of apoptosis
- growth factors
- cell matrix components
- viral proteins
What are the inducers of apoptosis?
- withdrawal of growth factors
- loss of matrix attachment
- viruses
- free radicals
- ionising radiation
- DNA damage
- Fas ligand/CD95 interaction
What are the molecular mediators and regulators in the extrinsic pathway for apoptosis?
death receptors e.g. CD95/Fas ligand
What are the molecular mediators and regulators of the intrinsic pathway of apoptosis?
- increased mitochondrial permeability
- Bcl-2 family
- cytochrome c/Apaf-1
- can induce OR inhibit
Name 2 molecular mediators and regulators of apoptosis
- p53
- caspases-cascade
Give 3 situations where there is increased apoptosis
- AIDS
- neurodegenerative disorders
- reperfusion injury
Give 2 examples of where there would be decreased apoptosis
- neoplasia
- auto-immune disease
What is inflammation?
- A local physiological response to tissue injury
- A complex reaction in vascularised connective tissue
- reaction of blood vessels which leads to accumulation of fluid and leukocytes in extravascular tissues
What is the purpose of inflammation?
- serves to destroy, dilute or wall off the injurious agent
- primarily a protective response intertwined with the process of repair.
What would happen without inflammation?
- wounds and injured organs would never heal
- infections would go unchecked
In what ways could inflammation and repair be potentially harmful?
- life-threatening hypersensitivity reactions
- chronic inflammatory diseases eg rheumatoid arthritis and crohns disease
- repair by fibrosis may lead to problems such as disfiguring scars
Name the 2 types of inflammation
- acute
- chronic
What are the 5 principle causes of acute inflammation?
- Infections e.g. viruses, bacteria, fungi
- hypersensitivity reactions- inappropriate or excessive immune response which damages the tissues incl reactions to parasites
- physical agents e.g. physical trauma, UV light, thermal injury (burns or frostbite)
- Irritant and corosive chemicals e.g. acids, alkalis, infecting agents releasing chemical irritants
- foreign bodies e.g. splinters, dirt, sutures
Name the 5 physical characteristics of inflammation
- Redness (rubor)
- heat (calor)
- swelling (tumor)
- pain (dolor)
- loss of function
Why do acutely inflamed tissues appear red?
due to dilation of small blood vessels within the damaged area.
Why is there production of heat during inflammation?
Increase in temperature of the tissue due to increased blood flow through the region (hyperaemia)
Why is there swelling during acute inflammation?
Results from accumulation of fluid in the extravascular space (fluid exudate)
Why is pain a characteristic of inflammation?
Due to stretching and distortion of tissues caused by increased fluid. Various chemical mediators, including bradykinin are known to produce pain.
Why is loss of function a characteristic of inflammation?
Movement of the inflamed area is consciously and reflexly inhibited by pain. severe swelling may immobilise tissues.
The initilal rapid reactionof tissue to injury involves several processes split into 2 phases. Name these phases
- vascular phase
- exudative and cellular phase
What are the two processes involved in the vascular phase?
- vasodilation
- increased permeability of blood vessels
What is the the result of vasodilation?
Increased blood flow and thus heat and redness
Describe the steps involved in the increased permeability of blood vessels in the vascular phase.
- small blood vessels are lined by a single layer of endothelial cells
- the walls of small vessels act as a microfilter
- oxygen, CO2 and some nutrients transfer across the wall by diffusion
- In AI permeability increases due to the formation of endothelial gaps in the venules
- endothelial cells contain contractile proteins, when stimulated by chemical mediators they pull open transient pores
- chemical mediators include histamine and bradykinin
- endothelial cell are NOT damaged in this process
Where is leakage of fluid confined to when the increased permeability of blood vessels occurs?
POST CAPILLARY VENULES
What happens during the exudative and cellular phase of acute inflammation?
- fluid and cells escape from permeable venules
What is the name given to the net increase in extravascular fluid as a result of the exudative and cellular phase?
Oedema
Describe the fluid exudate
- proteins incl immunoglobulins, important in destruction of invading organisms
- fibrinogen –> fibrin on contact with the extracellular matrix, so AI organ surfaces commonly covered by fibrin
- exudate is continually removed by lymphatics and replaced
- antigens are carried to regional lymph nodes for recognition by lymphocytes
How is the extent of oedema in tissues limited in AI?
The lymphatic channels become dilated as they drain away the oedema fluid of the inflammatory exudate
What is the diagnostic feature of acute inflammation?
Accumulation of neutrophils in the extracellular space
What is another name given to neutrophils?
polymorphonuclear leucocytes
State the functions of neutrophils
- kill microorganisms
- ingest offending agents
- degrade necrotic tissue
- produce chemical mediators
- produce toxic oxygen radicals
- produce tissue damaging enzymes
How does a neutrophil reach the site of an inflammatory stimulus?
By a combination of different processes involving adhesion of circulating leucocytes to endothelial cells and subsequent migration through the endothelium.
- margination
- adhesion
- transendothelial migration
Describe margination
Normally blood cells flow in the centre of the lumen (axial flow)- the area adjacent to the blood vessel wall carries only plasma.
Loss of intravascular fluid and increased plasma viscosity slows flow allowing neutrophils to flow in the plasmatic zone- this is MARGINATION
Where is the only place margination occurs?
Venules
How does increased neutrophil adhesion occur?
It results from the interaction between adhesion molecules on the neutrophils surface and the endothelial surface.
What does loose, rolling adhesion involve?
Selectins on the surface of activated endothelial cells and their receptors on the leucocyte.